A services and business incubator for geospatial open-source developments

This summary details the Horizon Europe call designated as HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-06, titled "A services and business incubator for geospatial open-source developments." This initiative, part of the Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), focuses on enhancing the European geospatial open-source software ecosystem.

Eligible applicants include a broad spectrum of entities, such as research institutions, universities, non-profit organizations, and technology-focused businesses. Collaboration with established organizations like NumFOCUS, OSGeo, and the Linux Foundation is encouraged, implying that consortium applications may strengthen the proposal's competitiveness, though not strictly mandated.

The program includes a budget of €6,000,000, structured as a lump-sum grant. It emphasizes that 45-60% of this budget must be allocated as financial support to third parties, especially critical geospatial open-source projects, with individual grants possibly reaching up to €60,000. Furthermore, the single-stage application process is set to open on January 14, 2026, and close on April 15, 2026.

Target sectors include environmental observation, climate services, biodiversity monitoring, and digital solutions. The opportunity aims to support projects at high Technology Readiness Levels (TRL 7-9), focusing on mature open-source software poised for commercialization and sustainable business development.

The initiative will act as a business incubation hub providing various non-monetary services, including business mentoring, legal and intellectual property advice, and support in establishing market presence. Though there is no formal co-funding requirement, demonstrating secured partnerships could enhance proposal value.

Overall, the call aims to strengthen European competitiveness, ensure software sovereignty, and facilitate transitions from open-source software to viable business ventures, thereby contributing to both the green and digital transitions across multiple sectors. The significant financial backing and non-financial support services represent a strategic investment in the sustainability of the European open-source geospatial community.

This is a Horizon Europe call, specifically HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-06, titled "A services and business incubator for geospatial open-source developments." It falls under the HORIZON-CSA (Coordination and Support Actions) funding scheme with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] Model Grant Agreement. The call is forthcoming with a single-stage deadline model. The planned opening date is January 14, 2026, and the deadline is April 15, 2026, at 17:00:00 Brussels time. The budget for this topic is 6,000,000 EUR.

The expected outcomes of this call are: strengthened European competitiveness in the environmental and Earth Observation service industry, including climate services and analytics services for nature and biodiversity, through leadership in open-source geospatial, including compute capabilities, software and algorithms, facilitating the integration of Earth observations and other geospatial data, models and software into sustained business opportunities; strengthened strategic sovereignty of the European open geospatial developer and geospatial software community with increased economic sustainability; accelerated transition of critical European open-source geospatial software assets and innovation towards sustainable business ventures.

The scope of the call focuses on addressing the challenges faced by open-source geospatial software ecosystems, which are critical digital infrastructures for various sectors like climate services, agriculture, biodiversity, and environmental monitoring. While Europe has world-class developers and software assets (e.g., GDAL, QGIS, Pangeo stack), their long-term sustainability is hindered by fragmented support, low visibility in funding, and limited access to business knowledge. Many projects operate at high Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) but lack the necessary business frameworks for long-term sustainability and European software sovereignty.

To address these challenges, proposals should: establish a business incubation and support hub for the geospatial open-source community in Europe, acting as a single-entry point to foster entrepreneurship and sustained open development across critical geospatial open-source projects; analyse the European market and innovation landscape to identify demands for geospatial open-source software and business opportunities; identify and catalogue critical geospatial open-source software projects in collaboration with European geospatial and open-source communities, and support mature projects with high TRL in developing sustainability and sovereignty strategies, including business strategies and IP models.

Proposals should include capacity-building elements like business mentoring, legal and IP advice, training on licensing and open business models, match-making with investors, alignment with European Innovation Council (EIC) selection criteria, and community-building actions. They should also plan pathways from open-source software to Venture Capital support, such as EIC support instruments.

A significant portion (45-60%) of the budget should be allocated for financial support to third parties (FSTP) to establish seed funding mechanisms for critical geospatial open-source projects and associated entities in EU and Horizon Europe associated countries. These grants should aid projects in implementing measures to start identified business opportunities, including administrative and legal set-up, productization, business development, branding, and marketing.

The general conditions for this call include: Admissibility Conditions regarding proposal page limits and layout as described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form; Eligible Countries as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, with specific provisions for non-EU/non-Associated Countries; Other Eligible Conditions as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes; Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria as described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes; Evaluation and award criteria, scoring, and thresholds as described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes; Submission and evaluation processes as described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual; Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement as described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes; Legal and financial set-up of the grants, including the possibility to provide financial support to third parties up to EUR 60,000 per third party (with a possible higher amount if duly justified), and eligible costs taking the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021.

Specific conditions are described in the specific topic of the Work Programme.

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreements include: Application form templates available in the Submission System (Standard application form HE CSA); Evaluation form templates (Standard evaluation form HE CSA); Guidance (HE Programme Guide); Model Grant Agreements (HE MGA, HE Unit MGA, Lump Sum MGA, Operating Grants MGA); Call-specific instructions; Detailed budget table (HE LS); Information on financial support to third parties (HE); and Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?".

Additional documents include: HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 (General Introduction, Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment, General Annexes); EIC Work Programme 2026; ERC Work Programme 2026; HE Programme Guide; HE Framework Programme 2021/695; HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764; EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509; Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme; Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment; EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement; Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual; Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions; and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

The budget overview lists several HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE topics, including HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-06, with their respective budgets, stages, opening dates, deadlines, contributions, and indicative number of grants.

Partner search announcements are available for finding collaborators, and the submission system will open on the date stated on the topic header.

This opportunity aims to bolster the European open-source geospatial software ecosystem by creating a business incubator and support hub. It recognizes the critical role of geospatial software in various sectors and seeks to address the challenges hindering the sustainability and strategic sovereignty of European developers. The program will provide financial support, mentorship, and resources to help open-source projects transition into viable businesses, ultimately strengthening Europe's position in the global geospatial industry. The call encourages proposals that establish a comprehensive support system, analyze market opportunities, and facilitate pathways to venture capital for promising open-source initiatives.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly defined in the provided text. However, based on the nature of Horizon Europe calls and the focus on open-source geospatial software, eligible applicants could include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, non-profits, and other organizations involved in software development, geospatial technologies, climate services, agriculture, biodiversity, and environmental monitoring. The call also mentions collaboration with established organizations such as NumFOCUS, OSGeo, and Linux Foundation, suggesting these types of entities are also relevant.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant. The call also mentions providing financial support to third parties (FSTP) in the form of grants.

Consortium Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether a consortium is required. However, given the scope of the call, which involves establishing a business incubation hub, analyzing markets, and collaborating with various communities, it is highly likely that a consortium of multiple applicants would be more competitive, if not required. The partner search announcements also suggest that collaboration is encouraged.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU and Horizon Europe associated countries. The call also mentions that a number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The program targets the following sectors: geospatial technology, open-source software, climate services, agriculture, biodiversity, environmental monitoring, Earth Observation, software services, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity mentions EU countries and Horizon Europe associated countries. It also refers to non-EU/non-Associated Countries that have specific provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Project Stage: The project stage targets mature open-source projects with high Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) and demonstrated user traction. The focus is on developing sustainability and sovereignty strategies, tailored business strategies, IP models, and investment readiness, suggesting a stage of validation, demonstration, and commercialization.

Funding Amount: The budget overview lists multiple topics under HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE, each with different budget allocations. For HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-06, the budget is EUR 6,000,000. The call specifies that 45-60% of the proposed budget should be allocated for providing financial support to third parties (FSTP), with a maximum of EUR 60,000 per third party (though this amount may be higher if justified).

Application Type: The application type is an open call, with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant. They will also receive non-monetary services such as business mentoring, legal and IP advice, and training. Third parties will receive financial support in the form of grants.

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned in the text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly mention a co-funding requirement from the applicant.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call, specifically HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-06, aims to bolster the European open-source geospatial software ecosystem. The core objective is to establish a business incubation and support hub that will act as a catalyst for entrepreneurship and sustainable development within this sector. The program recognizes that while Europe has world-class geospatial software and developers, their long-term sustainability is threatened by fragmented support and limited business acumen.

The call seeks proposals that will create a single-entry point for geospatial open-source projects, providing them with business mentoring, legal and IP advice, training on open business models, and matchmaking with investors. A significant portion of the funding (45-60%) is earmarked for financial support to third parties, enabling critical open-source projects to implement measures for starting identified business opportunities, such as administrative setup, productization, and marketing.

Eligible applicants should form consortia capable of providing comprehensive support to open-source projects, guiding them from high TRL levels towards sustainable business ventures and facilitating pathways to venture capital, including EIC support instruments. The ultimate goal is to strengthen European competitiveness and strategic sovereignty in the environmental and Earth Observation service industry by fostering a vibrant and economically sustainable open-source geospatial community. The call is structured as a single-stage application process with funding provided as a lump sum grant, emphasizing coordination and support actions.